A worrying air of caution has returned to Andy Murray’s game but the Scot has often been at his best when scrapping against the odds, and it is not too late to get things in order for the French Open

It is easy, and dangerous, to underestimate the depth of Andy Murray’s dilemma after another unexpected setback in his meandering season: bundled out of second round of the Italian Open he was defending for the first time. He is, after all, still No1 in the world.

But check the descent. This time last year Murray, who had not long become a father for the first time, was driving Novak Djokovic to distraction on Campo Centrale, ignoring a steady Sunday afternoon drizzle and uneven light as he forged on to win one of nine titles that would garland his 2016 campaign. He had not lost a set all week.